“Google to open office next week” – Newspaper

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ISLAMABAD: While Twitter and Facebook have expressed their inability to establish offices in Pakistan in the near future, the world’s largest search engine and video sharing platform Google is set to open a liaison office in Pakistan.

IT and Telecommunications Minister Syed Aminul Haque announced on Friday that the global giant has already registered as a company in Pakistan.

A Google delegation is expected to arrive in Pakistan early next week from Singapore and the company will likely announce the establishment of a functional office here, Haque told Dawn.

He also revealed that TikTok has also agreed to set up a liaison office in Pakistan.

However, Google has already taken the lead in this regard and the company has already been registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan (SECP), Karachi Registry.

Registration is the first step towards establishing the office, which is one of the requirements under the Removal and Blocking of Illegal Online Content (Procedure, Supervision and Safeguards) Rules 2021.

Twitter, Meta still reluctant to inconsistent policies, industry sources say

Social media platforms will have to comply with the laws and regulations of Pakistan after registering and opening offices.

The rules also require social media platforms to have their own servers in Pakistan to ensure data security. Currently, data from all platforms is stored outside the country.

The IT minister recently expressed confidence that more social media platforms will establish their offices in Pakistan, but industry sources said Twitter and Meta have so far been reluctant.

A senior executive of one of the country’s telecommunications companies said that both Twitter and Meta are undergoing some radical structural changes and have laid off a large number of employees in the region and globally as well.

Members of the Pakistan negotiating teams in Meta, representing Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp, have been changed, so no progress is expected in discussions with Meta and Twitter, the executive said.

On the other hand, telecom industry sources said that despite the IT ministry’s assurances of a business-friendly environment, the inconsistent policies had led to mistrust among the companies and they were reluctant to establish offices in Pakistan.

Meanwhile, Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari visited the Asia Pacific Meta (Facebook) headquarters in Singapore on Friday to launch the Stars program for monetization in Pakistan.

The program will help build the skills of young entrepreneurs for Pakistan’s growing number of Meta content developers.

Published in Dawn, December 10, 2022

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